Richard Youngs – Red Alphabet in the Snow

Red Alphabet in the Snow is a solo album by the extremely prolific but highly talented Richard Youngs. Two 17-minute pieces, in which Youngs layers acoustic guitars, banjo, cifteli, bass guitar, electric lead guitars, electric violin, epinette des vosges, shakers, sitar, swanee whistle, tambourine, triangle, 12-string guitar, ukulele, and his own voice, build up a meandering instrumental, acoustic, and even psychedelic mix. Each side of the album is made up of various compositions woven together with instrumentation, but which seem to flow seamlessly into a rich and resonant whole. Recorded in Krakow, Poland, and at home in Glasgow, the release comes as a 180g vinyl, in a handmade, recycled card sleeve and insert, hand stamped and numbered on the back, and limited to 250 copies.